Veteran: "I feel like my government has betrayed me"

Terry Collins served in the Canadian military for two decades before retiring in 2008, and has relied on the services of the Veterans Affairs office in Sydney, N.S., ever since.

The retired warrant officer, who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder following a tour of duty in Afghanistan, is now staring down at the closure on Friday of the Sydney office, along with eight other Veterans Affairs offices in smaller cities across the country.

"I served for 22 years proudly as a Canadian soldier. Now I feel like my government has betrayed me and let me down," Collins pleaded with the government last fall. "Veterans live everywhere, not just in the major cities."

Veterans Affairs minister Julian Fantino doesn't appear to be moved. First, Fantino skipped out on a meeting with vets on Tuesday ("bushwacked" in the words of the vets). By Thursday, Fantino was leading the Conservative fight against an NDP motion to keep the offices open, accusing the vets of being union stooges.

Meanwhile, these veterans are protesting around the country, including a rotating sit-in at the Sydney office.